HEC Paris in Qatar launches Distinguished Lecture Series with the first focus on China

HEC Paris in Qatar – the region’s leading hub for Executive Education, offering a complete portfolio of management programs including the first ever international Executive MBA (EMBA) in Qatar – has announced the beginning of a series of ‘Distinguished Lectures’ on a variety of topics related to the impact of business at the global level.

The first of these lectures, entitled ‘China’s Changing Model and its Impact on the Rest of the World’ took place on the evening of October 4 in Doha’s Grand Hyatt Hotel. The Lecture was presented by Professor Jaques Gravereau, a world-renowned expert in his field.

Professor Gravereau chairs the HEC Eurasia Institute, a think tank founded by HEC and prominent corporations both from Europe and Pacific Asia. He is an expert on Pacific-Asia and Europe-Asia relations, and the award winning author of reference books on Asia. As such, he is eminently qualified to have given the lecture on one of the most pertinent topics in the business world today: the emergence of China as an economic superpower.

China has undergone a complete economic transformation over the last 30 years, seeing its nominal GDP of approximately $300 billion in 1981 jump to $8 trillion in 2011. Average per capita income for last year was approximately $6,000, which, while still low by global standards, represents a 2,200% increase on the 1981 figure. China’s economy is now the second largest in the world, just behind the US.

The Professor’s lecture examined China’s emergence as the ‘factory of the world’, a vibrant market of 1.4 billion people, a major overseas investor but also a market which is swallowing up a huge 40% of the world’s raw materials – including oil and gas – for industrial and domestic use. Is the sky the limit for China’s growth and ambitions? How are international economic factors and internal pressure challenging the Chinese ‘model’? How should we interpret new Chinese geopolitics in terms of threats and opportunities? These questions, and many more, were raised – and answered – during the Professor’s address.

The well-attended event also gave attendees the chance to network with Human Resources and Learning and Development Professionals, as well as with current and future participants of the HEC Executive MBA and Specialized Master Degree programs.

The Chief Operating Officer of HEC Paris in Qatar, Joshua Kobb, commented: “Professor Gravereau’s engrossing address about China’s growing economic influence is the first of a new series of Distinguished Lectures that HEC Paris in Qatar is organizing for the business community of Doha.

“We seek to bring the world’s best and most knowledgeable speakers to Qatar to share their expertise on a range of business subjects. The lectures will entertain and educate the attendees about global business issues and trends, and we are looking forward to offering many additional lectures in the future.“The Distinguished Lectures Series” is part of HEC Paris in Qatar’s commitment to building international best business practice, in Qatar and the region at large.

According to the influential UK-based Financial Times media group, HEC Paris has been ranked as the number one business school in Europe every year since 2006, and number two in the world for Executive Education in 2012.

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